Spark Content

about

Independent

When you bring Spark on board, we don’t need a lot to get started. Point us in the right direction, give us a few people to talk to, and we’re off.

Flexible

We can handle a short project onsite, drop in for a day or two to fix up some troublesome content, or handle all of your content needs.

Experienced

With Spark, you are getting skilled professionals who have a wealth of knowledge. We understand how and why users look for information and the language that they use to search for it.

Deadline-focused

With multiple writers on a project, we can make sure that your content is ready whenever you need it. We focus on your needs to get the job done on time.

Technical

Besides common desktop publishing software, we are familiar with Confluence, Jira, Contour, and software versioning programs. We also have experience with industry-specific software, such as IBM Maximo, and can pick up new technologies quickly.

Versatile

We have experience writing content for a variety of industries, including government, health care, wireless communications, broadcasting, Internet security, and insurance.

Looking for a word nerd?

Services

Writing

We know how to write in a software development environment and aren’t afraid of source control or agile sprints. We know a thing or two about getting content printed and have experience with web site copy, blogs, and marketing collateral, too.

Editing

Editing is second nature to us. We can do a complete rewrite and restructure of your content, do a thorough review while adding in new content, or do a quick check for grammar and style.

Plain Language

We believe everyone should be able to understand something the first time that they read it. So, plain language is a trend we can get behind. We take complex ideas and make them easy to understand, applying plain language principles along the way.

Localization

Going global can be scary, but we can help. With our vendor contacts and our experience managing software and documentation translation, we can be as involved as you need us to be. You can hand over your content and let us work our magic or we can guide and teach you along the way.

Tracy Strike

Content Developer

Karen Probst

Content Developer and Editor

Angela Van Daele

Content Developer

blog

Prepare for translation the right way

You might think that most of your development team’s involvement in the translation process ends when the UI strings or documentation are complete. But, preparing content for translation isn’t just a matter of making sure that everything is complete in …..

Why your documentation might not be supporting your users as much as it could

We often meet with companies who want help updating their existing documentation. Sometimes, someone has kept up with some smaller changes. But, other times, the documentation has fallen far behind the software. So, they decide to call in the experts …..

Thinking inside the box (when it’s a really tiny box)

During our years creating smartphone documentation, we got very familiar with “the box” – not only the rhetorical box that we needed to think outside of to keep innovating, but also the physical box that we needed to think of …..

Why it’s important to write like a reader

As writers, we’re flexible when it comes to how we get the information that we need for a project. We’re just as comfortable talking to someone, going through the software ourselves to pull out information, or reading through reference documentation …..

Three free tools to check your writing quickly

We’ve all been there. You need to send something internally, and you’re in a hurry. You take pride in your professionalism and want to make sure that your message is polished and clear; you’re worried that you might overlook something …..

Happy Birthday Spark Content!

We’ve worked together for years, but we were still excited to celebrate Spark’s one-year anniversary recently. Although, we almost missed it because we were so busy! To mark the occasion, we celebrated with a team lunch, taking a few minutes …..

Letting off a little STEAM about STEM

Everyone is talking about STEM. The acronym (which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) might be little, but the focus on these areas is huge. And it’s been building for some time. In 2010, the Canadian Government launched the …..

Just Plain Awesome: can content be complete without being complicated?

Ever read the policy documents for your car insurance? How about the Terms and Conditions when you install new software? Financial statements? Even though we should read them, we probably don’t. We clip the car insurance slips and put them …..

Punctuation. Who needs it?

It’s a divisive issue. Or maybe it is just me. Either way, there’s no denying the impact of LOL-speak and texting on communication. The quaint LOL eased its way into our collective conscience and paved the way for the BRBs, …..

contact

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

Spark a conversation

wordnerds [at] sparkcontent.ca